English Mission Statement

At St. Margaret Mary Catholic Primary School we want to make learning vivid, real and enjoyable.  We are an inclusive learning community and children here will develop their ability to listen, speak, read and write for a wide range of purposes.  Using a range of texts (written, spoken and media based) our children use language to explore and express ideas, views and feelings which enhances both self-confidence, wellbeing and future opportunities.

Aims

• To promote and nurture skills of speaking and listening so that our children can maximize learning opportunities whilst building the confidence, desire and ability to listen carefully as well as express their views and opinions orally.
• To provide a rich environment that promotes a culture of reading and writing.
• To develop in our pupils a love of books and literature that will not only support their learning across the curriculum but also enrich their lives.
• To promote in our community pleasure for reading.
• To explicitly teach reading skills throughout the school that continually develop children’s understanding and enjoyment of texts.
• To teach children the craft of writing so that they develop confidence and skills to write well for a range of purposes and audiences as well as enjoyment and creativity.
• To have an interest in words and their meanings; developing a growing vocabulary in spoken and written forms.
• To teach the basics of phonics, spelling, handwriting and punctuation and thus facilitate creativity.
• To ensure that this “learning bus” of basic skills stops at regular intervals as children progress through year groups to offer opportunities to revisit, consolidate and provide “catch up “opportunities for our children.
• To value and celebrate diversity in culture.

Reading for Pleasure

At St Margaret Mary Catholic Primary School we believe that reading should be a pleasurable and inspirational experience. As part of our vision and values, we want our children to be enthused by books and grow into adults who will actively choose to read and who will pass their love of books onto future generations. We believe that children who read for pleasure deepen their understanding of the world around them and develop their compassion towards others. A book can transport you through time, take you to exotic destinations and allow you to be inspired by brave, heroic deeds. All of our children have access to books and we want the thrill of reading to encourage them to aspire to achieve their dreams.

Handwriting

Handwriting is a basic skill that influences the quality of work throughout the curriculum. By the end of Key Stage 2 all pupils should have the ability to produce fluent, legible and, eventually, speedy joined-up handwriting, and to understand the different forms of handwriting used for different purposes.

Our intention is to make handwriting an automatic process that does not interfere with creative and mental thinking.

Aims:

• To develop a neat, legible, speedy handwriting style using continuous cursive letters, which leads to producing letters and words automatically in independent writing.
• To establish and maintain high expectations for the presentation of written work.
• For pupils to understand, by the end of Year 6, the importance of neat presentation and the need for different letterforms (cursive, printed or capital letters) to help communicate meaning clearly.

Expectations
All teaching staff are encouraged to model the cursive style in all their handwriting, whether on whiteboards, displays or in pupils’ books.

Consistency throughout the school
Pupils should experience coherence and continuity in the learning and teaching of handwriting across all school years and be encouraged to take pride in the presentation of their work. Our objective is to help pupils enjoy learning and developing their handwriting with a sense of achievement and pride.

Handwriting frequency
Handwriting is a cross-curricular task and will be taken into consideration during all lessons. Formal teaching of handwriting will be carried out regularly and systematically to ensure Key Stage targets are met.

Pens and pencils

Children will start handwriting using a soft pencil. When fine motor skills have been established a handwriting pen can be used. More competent pupils can use a ballpoint pen.

Inclusion

For children who experience handwriting difficulties due to fine motor development, including those who are left-handed and those with special educational needs, the appropriate additional support will be put into place. Letter-join’s Lesson Planners all include differentiation activities for extra practice/challenge.

Handwriting at Home

Pupils are encouraged to practise their handwriting at home by using the Pupil log-in for Letter-join. Teachers will set specific tasks such as:

• Magic Patterns
• Magic Words
• PhonicsMatch
• Word Search
• Word Bank
• Write it Right!

Children can also watch the word and letter animations and practice and explore other handwriting resources on Letter-join.

Spelling at St Margaret Mary

At St Margaret Mary Catholic Primary School, we follow the Read Write Inc. Spelling scheme in Years 2-6. The Read Write Inc Spelling scheme is a 15-minutes-a-day programme.

Using a proven approach underpinned by phonics, fast–paced lessons and an online subscription, the delivery of the Read Write Inc. Spelling scheme ensures spelling success for children who are fluent readers.

Through our subscription to the Read Write Inc scheme we also have an online subscription to the Extra Practice Zone which is accessible from home. This can be accessed at www.oxfordowl.co.uk.

The log in details for each class are shared with parents and children.

Using these log in details, you can also access a range of free eBooks to help your child practice their reading at home.

Children from Nursery – Year 6 are able to use their log in details to access free eBooks from home on Oxford Owl.